Archive - January 2012

Globo newspaper reported today that new policies might soon open the door to fast-track visas for skilled workers. With recessions dimming prospects for professionals in both the U.S. and Europe, it is not impossible that Brazil may be about to experience a second golden age of immigration.
Current visa and immigration restrictions reflect the sort of ‘Brazil for Brazilians’ policies emblematic of the last dictatorship (1964-85), during which time authorities drafted the current ‘Statute on Foreigners.’
A team within the President’s...

Brazil is a country known for its disappearing ideological debates, its de-politicized populace, and a ‘culture of consensus’ that renders political debate among strangers or even friends much rarer than in other parts of the world. So when I read Brazilian news online, I always take a minute to scan user-generated comments, a fascinating prism into the nation’s collective consciousness and often a great source of context and additional data.
As in other countries the comment streams of Brazil’s major...

Six Ministers got the axe during President Dilma Rousseff’s first year in office, but that’s not all she cut. Rousseff has also pruned some small but significant taxes, improving the climate for business. Brazil’s economic vigor was on display in 2011. The Folha de São Paulo reports today that imports and exports broke all previous records, and it is little surprise that Brazil became the sixth largest economy in the world, overtaking the U.K. Add to these economic feats a package of transparency measures that should improve...